A woman accused of stealing a United States Postal Service van in Columbus allegedly drove it more than 80 miles before deputies and officers located her in a parking lot near Senoia on Tuesday evening. The suspect, identified as Nicole Marie Schuler, was taken into custody just before 5:55 p.m. after authorities tracked the van from Columbus through Meriwether County to Senoia.
According to cnaw2news.com, Coweta County E911 received a Be On the Lookout alert shortly after 5:30 p.m. Tuesday regarding the stolen white USPS van. The vehicle had reportedly been tracked into Meriwether County and was traveling north on Highway 85 toward Senoia, the outlet reported, as authorities worked to close in before the driver could get any farther.
Per 11Alive, Schuler allegedly drove the stolen postal van more than 80 miles before investigators finally caught up with her. The station also reported that Schuler allegedly took the van after a postal employee had stepped outside of it, and that she was allegedly wearing clothing disguising her as a man at the time.
Officers Close In Near Highway 85
Officers with the Senoia Police Department and deputies with the Coweta County Sheriff's Office located the stolen van and suspect just before 5:55 p.m. in a parking lot near East Highway 16 and Highway 85/74, the outlet's report states. The suspect description circulated to officers described a white female dressed in men's clothing, wearing blue jeans, with short hair and a backpack, according to the same cnaw2news.com account.
Schuler was taken into custody and transported to the Coweta County Jail while awaiting return to Columbus, where charges were expected to follow, per the report. The specific charges had not been immediately disclosed as of Tuesday evening.
USPS and Columbus Police Tracked the Van Together
USPS said postal inspectors responded to the report of a postal vehicle stolen in Columbus and helped locate it and apprehend the suspect in the Senoia area, according to 11Alive's reporting. Columbus police reportedly worked with USPS personnel at the department's real-time crime center to track the van as it moved north, the station noted, and USPS has said the investigation remains ongoing.
Postal Service vehicle theft cases have also arisen elsewhere around the country. In Las Vegas, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service has offered a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever stole a USPS vehicle from a post office there. In a separate case, a Glendale man pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal roughly 30 USPS mail carrier vehicles along with mail inside them, including 100 credit and debit cards belonging to other people, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.
Back in Coweta County, authorities have not released further details on what prompted the alleged theft in Columbus or how Schuler ended up heading toward Senoia. For now, the van has been recovered and the suspect is in custody, with any formal charges expected once she is returned to Columbus.
